The complaint book has been cancelled: handling complaints in 2021

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April 14, 2021

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The complaint book has been canceled since the beginning of 2021. Already on January 1, changes to the rules of retail sales began to take effect. One of the innovations was the abolition of the book of complaints and suggestions for consumers. From now on, retail outlets are not required to have a complaint book. Accordingly, the presentation of this book at the request of the client now remains at the discretion of the owner. However, the legislation has not proposed a similar replacement for the complaint book, so the issue of working with consumer complaints remains open. Moreover, according to the new rules on trade, if a consumer makes a complaint about a store, management is obliged to respond to it. So how will claims from citizens be processed now, and what alternatives are there to the complaint book? In this article we will try to understand all the issues related to the cancellation of the complaint book in 2021.

In what areas has the complaint book been canceled since 2021, and in what areas has it not?

So, let's take a closer look at who is not required to have a complaint book behind their counter. According to the new legislation, such a book may not be available in retail stores, namely online and offline stores.

Note!

If you are the owner of a restaurant business, beauty salons, dry cleaners, travel agencies or other types of business providing any services, then you must leave a book of complaints and suggestions.
Indeed, according to the law, organizations that provide services to consumers are required to have a complaint book. If your business does not fall under the category of retail stores, then do not rush to get upset, because maintaining a complaint book in general is not a very difficult process. There are no special criteria for maintaining complaint books. It is enough that it is at your counter and can be given to the buyer if necessary. Even the form of the book can be chosen independently: you can take a regular notebook or purchase a special notebook for complaints. Often, for convenience, owners set up a consumer corner, and the complaint book is located there.

It is worth noting that for the absence of a guest book, owners are subject to a fine (according to Article 14.4 of the Administrative Code). Namely:

• For individual entrepreneurs, the fine ranges from 10,000 to 20,000 rubles;
• For legal entities, the fine will range from 20,000 to 30,000 rubles.

The response to an entry from the complaint book depends on the nature of the entry in the book. For example, if a consumer in his post expresses gratitude to an employee or organization, or suggests various activities for development, then he may not give feedback, but simply take note. Most often, organizations leave short responses to comments and suggestions when checking the guest book daily. For example, “Thank you for your feedback, we will take note and take it into account!” This is done to avoid problems during inspection by the relevant authorities.

Difficulties arise when a book contains negative reviews containing various requirements from consumers. For example, a person may demand a refund of the cost of a product or service. Such records may be regarded by inspection authorities as claims, which means that this type of record requires a mandatory decision and response. In addition, the law establishes a special period for solving the problem, after which a fine will be imposed.

What response rules are established by law?

Before we tell you in more detail how exactly to compose an answer, we list the norms of Law No. 59-FZ that you must comply with when answering.

1. The medical organization gives a written response on the merits of the questions raised in the appeal (clause 3 of article 5, clause 4 of part 1 of article 10).
2. The response to the appeal is signed by the head of the medical organization or an authorized person (Part 3 of Article 10). The head physician may delegate the right to sign to his deputies or other employees on the basis of a local act of the medical organization or on the basis of a power of attorney. The power of attorney is issued by the head physician, certifying it with his signature.
3. If the appeal is received in the form of an electronic document, the response may be sent in the form of an electronic document by e-mail or in writing to a postal address (part 3 of article 7, part 4 of article 10). The response method is chosen by the patient-applicant. The address he indicates in the appeal will be the one he receives a response to.
4. During a personal appointment, the head of the medical organization, with the consent of the citizen, can respond to the appeal orally. This is acceptable if the patient clearly stated the facts and circumstances in an oral appeal, they are obvious and do not require additional verification. In other cases, the medical organization gives a written response (Part 3 of Article 13).

The concept of a complaint and how to respond to it

Regardless of whether the book of complaints and suggestions has been canceled or not, the consumer has the right to send a complaint to the owner. A claim can be statements, demands, complaints. However, in essence, the consumer simply wants something from you and believes that he can legally demand it. For example, a person may demand a refund of the amount of money paid if the product turned out to be of poor quality. Or demand a replacement of a product or service if it does not correspond to the configuration or is of poor quality.

If the consumer makes mistakes when drawing up a complaint (incorrect formatting, errors in the name of the company), the judicial authorities can also recognize the completed claim as valid. The main factor is the presence in the complaint of a requirement that does not need to be justified by regulations.

Thus, if your company has received any, complaints and their contents must be dealt with as quickly as possible. If the consumer is right, all his demands must be satisfied. And in case of incorrectness, it will be necessary to draw up a response to the claim, preferably taking into account the legal justification for the refusal. If the company ignores the complaint or wrongfully refuses to comply with the requirements, the judge may impose a fine, referring to Article 13 of the Consumer Protection Law, which is:

Half of the amount requested by the consumer. This means that if the plaintiff demanded 30,000 rubles, then when a fine is imposed, the company will pay them plus 15,000 on top towards the fine.

If you are bothered by calls from the bank about debt payment

The factor of endless and rather annoying calls from the bank regarding an overdue loan or other banking issues can be eliminated by filing a complaint.

Judging by practical experience, complaints of this type are in fact always not considered, since the actions of bank employees are considered legal: the borrower, by taking out a loan and leaving a number, signed an agreement on the processing of personal data.

The easiest option is to come to the bank yourself and submit an application. It must contain the following requirements:

1. On stopping calls to the former client’s number (violation of the rights and freedoms of the new subscriber).
2. About presenting the documents on the basis of which they are calling (presenting a loan agreement, and so on). The bank will not do this, after which you can file complaints with the Central Bank or Rospotrebnadzor.

If calls from the bank come at night, you need to contact the bank to change your personal data. There should be no more calls after this.

Contacts on social networks or by email

Pre-trial claims are included in the list of legally significant communications that cannot be ignored by companies. This means that they fall under paragraph 65 of the Resolution of the Plenum of the RF Armed Forces. According to this clause, legally significant messages can be sent to companies' emails or through other types of communication, unless this is prohibited by law or specified in the contract. The main thing is the ability to reliably identify the sender and addressee of the claim.

Simply put, if there are no prohibitions in the contract on the use of email, instant messengers or SMS services of the company (if they are publicly available), the buyer has the right to submit claims in any available way. If submitted claims are ignored, the company will be fined.

However, despite the abolition of the complaint book in 2021, many companies have no plans to abandon them. Although some note that consumers themselves rarely take advantage of the opportunity to write reviews in books. Increasingly, people are using other available ways to get the information they need: feedback on websites, online support chats, and company contact centers. In addition, Internet users often write reviews on various websites and social networks.

Responses to complaints from the complaint book

The basic rule for responding to a complaint sent to a company is to analyze the problem at the legislative level. After all, when submitting a claim, the consumer refers to the law, according to which he has the right to sue the company. Thus:

• 1. If the consumer is right, it is necessary to immediately satisfy his demands, for example, exchange the purchase, issue a refund, provide repair services.
• 2. In case of a consumer error, it is necessary to justify the refusal to comply with the requirements and explain what the error is. It is best to justify the refusal at the legislative level: in this way the reason for the refusal will be clearer to the consumer and perhaps he will reconsider his arguments.

The deadlines prescribed by law for a company to respond depend on the composition of the claim. They can be found in the article “Consumer Protection Law”. For example, the most popular reasons for filing claims:

Refund for the purchase of an item that does not fit - the buyer can return the item to a retail store within 14 days, and to an online store within 7 days. The company must issue refunds within three days in a brick-and-mortar store and within 10 days online.

Refund if you purchase a defective product. Claims for repairs or compensation for defective goods are also taken into account here. The seller is given 10 days to determine the reasons for the poor quality and resolve the problem. This time is enough to conduct examinations.

Exchange of low-quality goods. In this case, the purchase must be exchanged within a maximum of 7 days. However, if an examination is necessary, the period is extended to 20 days. And if the product is out of stock, the company has a month to deliver the product.

Warranty repair of goods. The repair period for low-quality goods should not exceed 45 days. This period also includes the time spent on the examination.

Refund of prepayment. When a company cannot deliver a paid product on time, the consumer may request a refund of the prepayment. In addition, he has the right to demand payment of a penalty from the company, which is 0.5% of the prepayment for each day of delay. Such a claim must be satisfied within 10 days.

What to do if a check arrives

We sympathize. But, in fact, everything is not so scary. If you work according to the law and more or less comply with everything, there is nothing to worry about. Here are a few points that will help you survive any test.

Ask the inspectors for documents

Let them show their official IDs and documents confirming the validity of the check. Usually this is an order for an unscheduled inspection, signed by the head of the regulatory body. The order is written based on the buyer's complaint. If the client has attached evidence of your violation to the complaint, they are not required to show it to you.

Currently, supervisory authorities do not work with anonymous complaints from the public. The author of the complaint must be identified. This plays into the hands of entrepreneurs: not everyone is ready to be exposed, much less go to court.

Take photos and videos

If the store has video recording cameras, even better. Video recordings can be used as evidence in court. By the way, inspectors also have the right to film what is happening.

The point is to record possible violations in the work of inspectors. This will give a chance to challenge the commission's findings. When conducting an inspection, supervisory authorities are required to strictly comply with the inspection regulations, otherwise the results can be appealed in court.

An example of prohibitory signs about photography and video filming

You are not obligated to help the inspectors

We came to check - check. Go, look and so on. If they ask for documents, show them, but only those they asked for, and not everything you have. Don't say too much - it can be used against you . The Miranda rule also works in the Russian Federation.

Do not interfere with the work of inspectors

If you see that the inspectors are violating something, pretend that you didn’t notice it. As we have already said, any deviation from the protocol can be used as a reason to cancel the results of the test.

Request a copy of the act

Based on the results of the inspection, the inspector is required to draw up a report. It indicates the essence and basis for the inspection, as well as its results. You are required to sign the inspection report (even if you disagree with something), and the inspector must give you a copy of it. After the inspection report is signed, the inspector does not have the right to correct or add anything. If you see him doing this, keep silent and film him. This is a gross violation of the regulations and any court will take your side.

If you disagree with something, you have the right to write about it in the act in the appropriate column. Write your vision of the situation and sign with the note “I do not agree with the information in the act.”

Based on the results of the inspection, they can draw up a protocol on the offense, if one has been established. A copy of the resolution is also required to be given to you.

The decision can be appealed within ten days from the date of issue. We are talking about calendar days, including weekends and holidays. If you are issued a fine, you must pay it within 2 months.

If you have been warned about an upcoming inspection, you need to properly prepare for this event. Put all documents, equipment and goods in order. Instruct your employees, otherwise they may say unnecessary things. You probably yourself know your weak points and possible violations - all this must be eliminated before the inspectors visit. It’s more difficult with a test purchase - no one will warn you and you won’t be able to prepare.

Conclusion

It is impossible to say exactly why the book of complaints and suggestions only for retail companies was canceled. However, all other businesses are required to have it in stock, since failure to do so can result in a fine of up to 30,000 rubles. Companies don't have to respond to every entry in the book; positive reviews can be left unanswered. At the same time, regardless of the presence of a book of complaints, companies are obliged to respond to pre-trial claims of consumers, and, if correct, satisfy the requirements within the time period specified by law, so as not to receive a fine.

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